It's got to be tough to be first band on the bill... but not for Ghost of a Saber Tooth Tiger, who saw a large fan gathering near the front the stage to witness the Sean Lennon-led band. Like their last appearance in Athens, the band were dressed in 70’s vintage clothing.

Apparently the band was not used to playing short 30-minute set, and at the minus-five minute mark warning, the band had to cut their set short by dropping off ‘Devil You Know’ and choosing instead to close out their set with their Syd Barett cover song ‘Long Gone’. The latter song had Charlotte Kemp Muhl switch over to keys.

Broken Arrow, OK native JD McPherson lived up to his latest album’s title and Let the Good Times Roll (on Rounder Records) for his rollicking 40 min. set on a more crowded festival afternoon than the day before. McPherson’s retro blend of garage, rockabilly, and vintage r & b, played it more than cool on this warm and humid day, with upright bassist Jimmy Sutton giving his instrument an ample workout as well.

“This is a pretty good thing you guys got going on here”, McPherson said, taking off his jacket to reveal a ‘Smith Fabrication’ t-shirt in bold letters.

Fans twisted and shouted in the midday heat to ‘Fire Bug’, the new album’s title track, and ‘North Side Gal’; the latter dedicated to us “Norlanders” and sounding direct from a ’50’s diner jukebox, before the band ended with a nearly ten-minute “Wolf Teeth” to crowd howling.

Seun Kuti and Egypt 80

Seun Kuti and Egypt 80

How fitting on Father’s Day that the heir to the Afrobeat throne, Seun Kuti , led his father Fela’s band, Egypt 80, playing undoubtedly the highest energy hour of the weekend. The Nigerian group was the worldbeat entry to the festival and the first African band to grace its stage. Kuti and his fifteen-plus cohorts made their short time worth it with the tribal, jazz, funk, and rhythmic hybrid that his father pioneered.

Bandleader emeritus Baba Ani spent the first several minutes introducing each member and preaching the spirit of togetherness before the band launched into its set. Kuti emerged to take the lead a song in, for ‘Opposite People’, a Fela composition, and proceeded to infectiously shimmy and shake for the next hour; like being chased by a swarm of bees, or like his clothing was on fire.

Shekere (a dried gourd with beads) player Okon Iyamba looked like the band’s smiling, ever-relaxed Keith Richards, in a smooth hat and shades. Bassist Kunle Justice kept things grounded and funky, while the full horn section added additional danceability to songs from their latest, last year’s A Long Way to the Beginning (Knitting Factory Records).

Prior to playing their last song, Kuti took a minute to talk about Tetrahydrocannabinol (or commonly referred to as THC) found in marijuana. He said as he ‘astral-traveled’, that he discovered the real meaning of those letters: ‘The higher consciousness’.

Babes in Toyland

Babes in Toyland

With only a dozen live shows since they reformed earlier this February, you can tell the punk rock trio Babes in Toyland was not quite ready for prime time, having mis-timed and having to restarting a few songs on their set. Of course, this is punk ... no one cared because they're too busy moshing, slam dancing, and body surfing.

Despite what Wikipedia said, the Babes last show was in November 2000, so it's been 15 years since they were seen together, and 18 years without the original bassist.

As for the band, even with the shaky start, they sounded fantastic live. Kat Bjelland's vocals never sounded better, despite all the years of banshee screaming.

It's good to finally get Babes back in Minneapolis, where they belong. The band announced late May that they will be doing their first North American tour in 20 years, kicking it all off at St Louis in Missouri on August 27th and ending at Pop Montreal International on September 19th. More details can be found on news.weheartmusic.com.

Modest Mouse

Modest Mouse

The long awaited set by the Sunday headliners, came with a mystery or two attached – The Washington state band had just released their first album in eight years, Strangers to Ourselves (Epic Records), so there was a question of being rusty or not, and singer Isaac Brock had revealed that he had somehow sprained his ankle at the hotel the night before.

Both mysteries were revealed (no, not rusty, and too tight sheets, apparently) and Modest Mouse played a crowd-pleasing 70 min. set to the faithful that had been waiting these many years to see them again live.

Starting with 2004’s ‘World at Large’ , the band’s truncated festival set played most of their radio favorites and selections from the new album, with the exception of ‘04’s ‘Ocean Breathes Salty’. Single ‘Lampshades on Fire’, played early on, got people moving, ‘Dramamine’ reached back to their 1996 debut, and ‘Float On’ appropriately had balloons being bopped around over audience members’ heads.

Encore ‘The Good Times are Killing Me’, from Good News for People Who Love Bad News, seemed appropriate from the somewhat awkward Brock and crew, playing to a still-excited but weather-beaten crowd, that had been under the sun for six hours.

NOTE: Thanks to Andrea at the Current for providing much of the set lists.

It's got to be tough to be first band on the bill... but not for Ghost of a Saber Tooth Tiger, who saw a large fan gathering near the front the stage to witness the Sean Lennon-led band. Like their last appearance in Athens, the band were dressed in 70’s vintage clothing.

Apparently the band was not used to playing short 30-minute set, and at the minus-five minute mark warning, the band had to cut their set short by dropping off ‘Devil You Know’ and choosing instead to close out their set with their Syd Barett cover song ‘Long Gone’. The latter song had Charlotte Kemp Muhl switch over to keys.

Broken Arrow, OK native JD McPherson lived up to his latest album’s title and Let the Good Times Roll (on Rounder Records) for his rollicking 40 min. set on a more crowded festival afternoon than the day before. McPherson’s retro blend of garage, rockabilly, and vintage r & b, played it more than cool on this warm and humid day, with upright bassist Jimmy Sutton giving his instrument an ample workout as well.

“This is a pretty good thing you guys got going on here”, McPherson said, taking off his jacket to reveal a ‘Smith Fabrication’ t-shirt in bold letters.

Fans twisted and shouted in the midday heat to ‘Fire Bug’, the new album’s title track, and ‘North Side Gal’; the latter dedicated to us “Norlanders” and sounding direct from a ’50’s diner jukebox, before the band ended with a nearly ten-minute “Wolf Teeth” to crowd howling.

Seun Kuti and Egypt 80

Seun Kuti and Egypt 80

How fitting on Father’s Day that the heir to the Afrobeat throne, Seun Kuti , led his father Fela’s band, Egypt 80, playing undoubtedly the highest energy hour of the weekend. The Nigerian group was the worldbeat entry to the festival and the first African band to grace its stage. Kuti and his fifteen-plus cohorts made their short time worth it with the tribal, jazz, funk, and rhythmic hybrid that his father pioneered.

Bandleader emeritus Baba Ani spent the first several minutes introducing each member and preaching the spirit of togetherness before the band launched into its set. Kuti emerged to take the lead a song in, for ‘Opposite People’, a Fela composition, and proceeded to infectiously shimmy and shake for the next hour; like being chased by a swarm of bees, or like his clothing was on fire.

Shekere (a dried gourd with beads) player Okon Iyamba looked like the band’s smiling, ever-relaxed Keith Richards, in a smooth hat and shades. Bassist Kunle Justice kept things grounded and funky, while the full horn section added additional danceability to songs from their latest, last year’s A Long Way to the Beginning (Knitting Factory Records).

Prior to playing their last song, Kuti took a minute to talk about Tetrahydrocannabinol (or commonly referred to as THC) found in marijuana. He said as he ‘astral-traveled’, that he discovered the real meaning of those letters: ‘The higher consciousness’.

Babes in Toyland

Babes in Toyland

With only a dozen live shows since they reformed earlier this February, you can tell the punk rock trio Babes in Toyland was not quite ready for prime time, having mis-timed and having to restarting a few songs on their set. Of course, this is punk ... no one cared because they're too busy moshing, slam dancing, and body surfing.

Despite what Wikipedia said, the Babes last show was in November 2000, so it's been 15 years since they were seen together, and 18 years without the original bassist.

As for the band, even with the shaky start, they sounded fantastic live. Kat Bjelland's vocals never sounded better, despite all the years of banshee screaming.

It's good to finally get Babes back in Minneapolis, where they belong. The band announced late May that they will be doing their first North American tour in 20 years, kicking it all off at St Louis in Missouri on August 27th and ending at Pop Montreal International on September 19th. More details can be found on news.weheartmusic.com.

Modest Mouse

Modest Mouse

The long awaited set by the Sunday headliners, came with a mystery or two attached – The Washington state band had just released their first album in eight years, Strangers to Ourselves (Epic Records), so there was a question of being rusty or not, and singer Isaac Brock had revealed that he had somehow sprained his ankle at the hotel the night before.

Both mysteries were revealed (no, not rusty, and too tight sheets, apparently) and Modest Mouse played a crowd-pleasing 70 min. set to the faithful that had been waiting these many years to see them again live.

Starting with 2004’s ‘World at Large’ , the band’s truncated festival set played most of their radio favorites and selections from the new album, with the exception of ‘04’s ‘Ocean Breathes Salty’. Single ‘Lampshades on Fire’, played early on, got people moving, ‘Dramamine’ reached back to their 1996 debut, and ‘Float On’ appropriately had balloons being bopped around over audience members’ heads.

Encore ‘The Good Times are Killing Me’, from Good News for People Who Love Bad News, seemed appropriate from the somewhat awkward Brock and crew, playing to a still-excited but weather-beaten crowd, that had been under the sun for six hours.

NOTE: Thanks to Andrea at the Current for providing much of the set lists.